Avoiding the Obstacles to Parent Involvement – Helpful Resources

When it comes to providing a good Parent Involvement program at your school, you may be faced with many obstacles. To start with, which languages are spoken at your school by the parents of the children who attend your school? There may be many languages, so where do you start?

Here are a few suggestions and resources to help you with planning and research for your Parent Involvement Program:

Do your Research
–The National PTA has a wonderful and comprehensive web page that addresses the roadblocks to Parent Involvement.

–The Harvard Family Research Project provides a Free Webinar/Powerpoint on How to Build a Family Engagement System

–Title I on Demand provides a valuable subscription service with videos and topics.

–Title III and The U.S. Department of Education – make sure you know what the types of programs that qualify under Title III. Basically, Title III focuses on providing English learners with programs to help them succeed academically, including parent involvement. But do your research!

Know your Parents
Which Languages are spoken by the parents at your school?
Do you have teachers at your school who speak the same languages as the parents? Do parents know what they can do if when they are on the school campus and are there programs to help them understand the various opportunities on campus and home?

Talk to Teachers
Are teachers interested in working directly with parents to promote involvement? Do they understand the cultural groups at your school to support the parents and help them to feel welcomed at school? The National Educational Association explains the need for Cultural Competence.

Get Trained in Cultural Competency
Many organizations provide cultural competency training for teachers to understand the various cultural aspects for working with parent effectively. The Latino Family Literacy Project™ is a leader in working with Hispanic parents by providing teachers with a new framework and understanding for working with parents of English Learners, who are Spanish speaking. Spanish speakers comprise the largest demographic (about 85%) of English learners throughout the United States.

Provide Materials and Resources
If parents are to be involved in a meaningful engagement with the school and with their children, they need appropriate materials in order to participate. If parents lack the resources or materials to support their children, does the school have lending libraries or materials to provide home resources?

– Colorin Colorado – is a bilingual site for families and educators of English language learners.